Cointelegraph, Tuesday 8 September: two men are accused of killing four people in Atizapán de Zaragoza, State of Mexico, for a “caja fría” — a hardware wallet — they believed tied to “millions of dollars” in bitcoin. The charge is not a verdict. Wednesday 9 September has not ruled. Charles Guillemet, Ledger’s CTO, has not spoken on this file. His lesson on the device, yes: it does not hold the coins.

The State of Mexico prosecutor (FGJEM) announced the arrests on 2 September. Suspects: Diego Sebastián and Gerardo, surnames withheld by Cointelegraph. Prosecutors, via La Jornada, accuse them of killing Jonathan Meléndez, Camilo Séptimo’s keyboardist, his pregnant wife, their daughter, an employee, at home. The golden retriever too. If convicted: 25 to 70 years per victim. Omar García Harfuch, the same day: one of the two was a business associate, and allegedly used that tie to get in. We quote. We do not invent the evening.

The device signs. It does not store the coins.

Guillemet, 18 May 2023 thread, on all hardware wallets, not one model: “A hardware wallet is mostly used as a signing device.” Private keys are generated there, protected there, used to sign. “Your private keys never leave the hardware wallet. Whenever they are used, your consent is requested.” UTXOs stay on Bitcoin. A device is not a box of coins. A USB stick is not a hardware wallet. Infobae, Monday, has a relative at the 4 September hearing speaking of a USB and ~3 million pesos of crypto access. La Jornada / FGJEM: caja fría, millions of dollars in the suspects’ heads. Two objects. Two orders of magnitude. We do not merge them.

A hardware wallet is mostly used as a signing device. […] Your private keys never leave the hardware wallet. Whenever they are used, your consent is requested.— Charles Guillemet, Ledger CTO, 18 May 2023 — not a comment on Atizapán

A signing device holds against malware. It does not, by itself, hold against someone already in the apartment. The recovery phrase, Guillemet writes in the same thread, “should NEVER share with ANYONE, including Ledger.” We do not turn that into a manual. We set the limit. Bitcoin Layer 1 was not broken.

Wednesday, not a verdict

Diario de México, Sunday: the judge says whether there is enough to proceed. Infobae, Tuesday: pre-trial detention, Barrientos prison, since 4 September. Hearing Wednesday 9, 09:30. Counts cited: homicides, interruption of pregnancy, cruelty to an animal. Cointelegraph / CertiK: 20 home invasions targeting crypto holders in H1 2026, against one a year earlier. A count. Not a brief. We had opened this with kidnappings.

  • Held: Atizapán, 4 dead + dog, Meléndez / pregnant wife / daughter / employee, 2 suspects (FGJEM 2 Sept.), associate (Harfuch), alleged caja fría, 25–70 years/victim if convicted, 9 Sept. hearing, CertiK 20 vs 1. Guillemet 2023: signing device, keys never leave, consent.
  • Not held: that Guillemet spoke on Atizapán. An audited on-chain balance. That the device was found. That a USB stick is a hardware wallet. A verdict. $1.5m. Advice to buy a model.

Guillemet, 18 May 2023 thread, on all hardware wallets, not one model: “A hardware wallet is mostly used as a signing device.” Private keys are generated there, protected there, used to sign. “Your private keys never leave the hardware wallet. Whenever they are used, your consent is requested.” UTXOs stay on Bitcoin. A device is not a box of coins. A USB stick is not a hardware wallet. Infobae, Monday, has a relative at the 4 September hearing speaking of a USB and ~3 million pesos of crypto access. La Jornada / FGJEM: caja fría, millions of dollars in the suspects’ heads. Two objects. Two orders of magnitude. We do not merge them.